Hannah Simone: New Girl fans say they love men they are ashamed of, just like Cece

Hannah Simone loves having a ‘real’ girlfriend in New Girl (Picture: Getty)

Hannah Simone, 32, is an ex-model and TV presenter with a global upbringing. She plays the best friend of Zooey Deschanel in TV show New Girl.

Is being in New Girl as much fun as it looks?
It’s like opening a gift box and inside the box is another gift and another gift and another gift. I knew from the first episode that it was special. The way it was written was so honest and I knew Zooey would make it even more special.

Do you appreciate being able to show a genuinely deep female friendship?
I’ve loved that from the beginning because I saw what an amazing friend my character, Cece, was. Often in comedies, people like to pit women against each other because it’s funny but when I think of my best friends, they are my ‘sister’ and have my back no matter what. I love that in the first episode, Cece showed up in the flat where her best friend is moving in with three guys she met on Craig’s List and said: ‘If you touch her, I’ll kill you,’ as opposed to that fake Hollywood thing of her being a model, coming in and flirting with them all, and not caring about her friend. And she literally gives her the shirt off her back for her to wear when going out.

Did you ever see Cece getting together with Schmidt?
I definitely didn’t expect my character was going to end up with a guy who needs a ‘douchebag’ jar. But Max Greenfield, who plays Schmidt, is the most talented, lovely person. I feel like we can’t pick who we fall in love with because if we could, we would all make better choices. Your heart just falls where it falls.

What do fans say when they recognise you?
I guess there are all these women with a big secret – they’re hiding men they are ashamed of. They come up to me and say: ‘I’ve been dating this guy for six months in secret but none of my friends know. I can’t give him up even though he’s embarrassing.’

Do you feel more Jess or Cece?
When Jess was strong, you could see what a mess Cece was, and then you flip it in episodes where Cece is the strong one and Jess gets to be a mess. So I guess I identify with both of them when they’re strong, and both of them when they need a friend.

Is there a crazy moment from the programme that stands out?
The moment when Cece found out she wasn’t pregnant. I had to run and attack Jeanne Tripplehorn. I was kissing her and screaming that I got my period. I’m a huge fan of hers, so that was weird. I went to up her and said: ‘Hi, I’m a fan and now I’m going to run up to you screaming: “I’ve got my period.”’

Have you ever lived with a bunch of male flatmates?
I’m not crazy, so no. I have an extended family of close friends, guy and girls. I have three brothers and three sisters and my brothers are my comic relief because I feel that men are so good at letting things go in a moment.

Your accent seems all over the place. Where were you born?
I was born in London but I’ve lived everywhere – India, Canada, the US. My mum won’t speak to me unless I speak properly on the phone. I have to speak ‘American’ for work so often the accent comes through when I’m not at work. When I lived in India, I’d speak like an Indian to get good prices while shopping. I’m good with accents.

How did you go from being a TV presenter in Canada to an actress in Hollywood?
On paper, my life looks nuts. My family moved countries every three or four years. When I lived in London, I worked at the UN for a while as its human rights and refugees officer. I have two degrees and my second was in radio. I was a programmer and news reporter in Canada. My CV looks bananas. I’ve been on stage since I was eight years old, so my whole life I’ve been doing two things passionately and actively – acting and being involved with human rights and journalism. The pay cheques have now swapped amounts but, for me, nothing has changed.

You’re pretty exotic-looking. Has that helped you in Hollywood?
Growing up, I remember watching TV and I didn’t see a lot of people who looked like me, especially someone who passed as a glamorous model on a mainstream TV show. So you’ve no idea how cool this is for me. I told our creator Liz Meriwether that it doesn’t matter if Cece is Spanish, Arabic or whatever – everyone claims me as their own. Liz told me she just cast the funniest person but I do feel there’s a shift in American television. Women are no longer being defined by where they were born or their colour. That’s huge.